Spring fatigue is not "poor sleep," and insomnia is not necessarily "stress." Traditional Chinese medicine teaches you how to break the vicious cycle of "unable to wake up during the day and unable to sleep at night."

“Clearly, I slept for eight or nine hours, but during the day, I still feel groggy, even falling asleep in meetings; yet at night, when I lie in bed, I toss and turn unable to sleep, my mind feels like it’s in ‘night mode’ and wide awake…” Are you experiencing this state?

Professor Hu Min, a deputy chief physician in the Traditional Chinese Medicine Department at the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, has encountered many patients like this in her clinic. She found that many people attribute their daytime drowsiness to “not sleeping well,” and their nighttime insomnia to “stress,” while overlooking the unique physical changes and blood circulation patterns characteristic of the spring season.

Hu Min stated that when daytime sleepiness and nighttime insomnia alternate, it often signals the body sending the same message—an imbalance of Yang energy and obstructed Qi and blood flow.

Daytime sleepiness and nighttime insomnia

28-year-old Xiao Zhang is a typical “spring drowsiness patient.” He goes to sleep around one or two in the morning but struggles to wake up when his alarm rings at 8 AM. During meetings at work, his gaze becomes increasingly vacant, and his mind feels foggy. “I thought I wasn’t getting enough sleep, so I caught up on sleep until noon on weekends, but ended up feeling more tired—dizzy, drained, and unable to sleep at night.”

During her examination, Hu Min noted that Xiao Zhang had a thick white coating on his tongue with tooth marks on the edges and a weak pulse. “This is not simply sleep deprivation; it is a case of spleen deficiency and dampness obstructing the body, where the Yang energy fails to rise. During the day, Xiao Zhang’s Yang energy cannot ascend, and at night, due to prolonged late-night activities, his Yin blood is depleted, causing his Yang energy to ‘not return home,’ leading to both fatigue and insomnia.”

Hu Min believes that Traditional Chinese Medicine views sleep as a “shift change” between the body’s Yang energy (Wei Qi) and Yin blood (Ying Yin). During the day, Yang energy “goes out on patrol,” keeping a person awake; at night, Yang energy “returns home to rest” and merges with Yin blood, allowing a person to sleep. If Yang energy fails to return or if Yin blood is insufficient to “receive” it, the phenomenon of “unable to wake up during the day and unable to sleep at night” will occur.

Common misconceptions

Hu Min has discovered that many people fall into two common misconceptions when dealing with spring drowsiness and insomnia:

The first misconception is treating spring drowsiness as a lack of sleep, leading to binge sleeping on weekends.

“Prolonged lying down harms Qi.” Hu Min said that spending too much time in bed during the day causes stagnation of Qi, increasing dampness in the spleen and stomach, which in turn makes it even harder for Yang energy to rise. Worse still, if one sleeps too much during the day, the drive for sleep at night is consumed too early, resulting in a vicious cycle of “unable to wake up during the day and unable to sleep at night.”

The second misconception is taking sleeping pills or melatonin when unable to sleep, seeking immediate results.

“This morning, a patient told me he took a lot of melatonin, but it didn’t work.” Hu Min emphasized that sleeping pills and melatonin should be used according to the condition. If insomnia is caused by liver Qi stagnation, heart and spleen deficiency, or excessive heat from Yin deficiency, relying solely on medication to force sleep without addressing the root cause often leads to the situation of “sleeping today, unable to sleep tomorrow,” and may even result in drug tolerance.

Imbalance of Yin and Yang in the body

From a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, the symptoms of daytime drowsiness and nighttime insomnia in spring essentially stem from a disruption in the growth and contraction of Yang energy during this season. Hu Min indicated that there are several common types.

Liver Qi stagnation transforming into fire type: Difficulty falling asleep, tossing and turning, dry mouth and bitter taste, irritability. Often caused by significant stress or emotional blockages leading to liver Qi stagnation, Yang energy becomes stagnant and transforms into fire, preventing it from contracting at night.

Spleen deficiency with damp obstruction type: Heavy head during the day, heavy limbs, loose stools, thick white tongue coating with tooth marks. Often due to the heavy humidity in southern regions combined with irregular eating habits and weak spleen and stomach function, preventing the upward movement of clear Yang energy, making daytime drowsiness unbearable.

Heart and spleen deficiency type: Frequent dreams and easy awakening, difficulty falling back asleep afterward, daytime palpitations and chest tightness, pale complexion. Often a result of prolonged mental strain and excessive worry, leading to insufficient Qi and blood, and lack of nourishment for the mind.

Yin deficiency with excessive fire type: Night sweats, hot palms and soles, dry mouth and throat, red tongue with little coating. Commonly seen in those who frequently stay up late, where Yin blood is depleted and Yang energy is relatively excessive, causing empty heat to disturb the heart.

“Many people have a mix of deficiency and excess; simply eliminating dampness won’t resolve the issue.” Hu Min cautioned that patients in Guangdong often come in saying, “Doctor, I have a lot of dampness,” but dampness is often combined with blood stasis or Qi deficiency, requiring a tailored treatment approach.

Yang energy should rise during the day and descend at night

Regarding spring drowsiness and insomnia, Hu Min believes that the first step is to maintain good “noon and midnight” sleep, promoting the growth of Yang energy. The “Huangdi Neijing” states, “In the spring months, sleep early and rise early, and take long walks outdoors.” This means going to sleep before 11 PM to nourish gallbladder Qi and liver blood; waking up at six or seven in the morning and doing some stretching exercises to ensure timely rising of Yang energy.

“Limit naps to 15-30 minutes; sleeping too long during the day can negatively affect nighttime sleep.” When feeling drowsy during the day, it might help to get up, stretch, and massage the Baihui point (top center of the head) or the temples, or go outside for some sun if the weather is nice. “Activating Yang energy is more refreshing than sleeping with your head down,” Hu Min said.

Hu Min also mentioned that diet should align with promoting liver Qi, nourishing Qi and blood, and eliminating dampness. For example, when liver Qi is stagnant, drinking rose and dried tangerine peel tea can help soothe the liver and regulate Qi; when Qi is deficient and dampness is heavy, drinking five-finger peach and poria tea can tonify Qi and eliminate dampness; for heart and spleen deficiency, using longan and yam soup can nourish the heart and calm the mind; for Yin deficiency with excessive fire, using lily and lotus seed soup with pork bones can nourish Yin and reduce fire.

Soaking feet in warm water before bed

How can one promote sleep? Hu Min recommended the simplest method: soak your feet in warm water for 15-20 minutes before bed, adding ginger or mugwort to the water to promote blood circulation and help Yang energy contract. After soaking, massage the Shenmen point (the depression on the outer wrist near the little finger) and the Zusanli point, which can aid sleep.

“For mild insomnia, we prefer non-drug treatments, such as gua sha, ear acupressure, and meridian massage, which do not burden the liver and kidneys while helping to regulate Qi and blood,” Hu Min said.

“Many people feel that traditional Chinese medicine is ineffective after taking it for just two days.” Hu Min pointed out that insomnia is often the result of prolonged late nights, stress, and irregular eating habits accumulating over time. “Illness comes on suddenly, but recovery is gradual; changing one’s constitution is like improving soil—it can’t be accomplished in just one or two doses of medicine.” She suggests maintaining the treatment for 1-2 weeks, and if daytime yawning decreases, emotions stabilize, and falling asleep becomes faster, “these are all signs that your constitution is improving.”

“Spring drowsiness is not just a lack of sleep; it is the body’s way of reminding you—it’s time to align with the season and adjust your rhythm.” Hu Min said that spring is a season of growth and rebirth; instead of being stuck in the cycle of “unable to wake up during the day and unable to sleep at night,” why not start tonight by going to bed fifteen minutes earlier, soaking your feet once, and giving your body some time to recover.

Yangcheng Evening News All-Media Reporter Zhang Hua

Editor: Wu Jiahong